


not to fill the silence with false notes

by crowtesque



Category: Batman - All Media Types, Detective Comics (Comics)
Genre: Aromantic!Jon, Asexual!Eddie, Complicated Relationships, Domestic Fluff, M/M, Sharing a Bed, it's about The Rituals(TM)
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-09-04
Updated: 2019-09-04
Packaged: 2020-10-10 03:30:17
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,092
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20521223
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/crowtesque/pseuds/crowtesque
Summary: Ace!Eddie and Aro!Jon try to emulate a healthy relationship.





	not to fill the silence with false notes

**Author's Note:**

> _I want to share this emptiness with you; Not fill the silence with false notes, or put tracks through the void. I want to share this wilderness of failure with you. The others have built you a highway; fast lanes in both directions. I offer you a journey without direction, uncertainty, and no sweet conclusion._ Derek Jarman, The Garden.
> 
> talk to me about these nerds on tumblr @riddlercore!

Jonathan Crane might legitimately drive Eddie insane. They’ve been at this for what, two months? Seven weeks and two days really, not that Eddie was counting. Two months since he first caught Jon’s unhealthily slim wrist in his gloved palm after a successful escapade and, well… propositioned him. It had seemed like a good idea then and it _is_ a good idea! They made quite the pair with their contrasting costumes, and Jon has thus far been one of the few to keep up with Eddie and his schemes. It didn’t take much to get Jon alone considering they were often cellmates back in Arkham.

It would be a brilliant idea if it were working, which it isn’t, because Jon’s skull might as well be stuffed with straw and he barely acknowledges Eddie outside of their work. Eddie doesn’t think he’s asking for all that much either, which darkens his mood all the more. He could have anything- anyone! But no, he’s certain that it’s Jon’s claws sunk deep into his heart. 

It’s not as if Eddie is under any grand illusions as to how many problems a relationship like theirs might bring to the table. He had expected the awkward mornings on the occasions he deigned to stay the night in one of Jon’s abysmal hideouts; relished when Jon began stocking his preferred brand of hot chocolate. He had expected the long nights with raised voices. He had even expected Jonathan to put his work before their relationship- as sore as the idea made him, and how it tied his brain up in knots if he thought about it too long. Oh well, it’s not as if Jon had the same incentive he did. Regardless, Eddie had thought that Jon would be over this… shyness by now. The old bastard might as well be avoiding him. Now _that,_ that Eddie couldn’t stand for.

Speaking of.

“Jon,” Eddie calls out, his voice jarring in the relative quiet of Jonathan’s “lab.” Eddie likened it to a neglected morgue what with the smell of methanethiol that hung around. The man in question grunts, his thin frame hunched over the lone desk in the corner, and Eddie winces at how the posture showcases his knobby spine. 

“Should I expect you coming to bed tonight, or will you subject yourself to another night on the sofa?” He suspects the answer - Jon has only shared the bed with him twice in the dozen or so times they’ve spent the night in each other’s haunts. Eddie is a gracious man though, so he’ll give the other man a chance to win his good graces.

He watches with no small amount of impatience as Jon straightens up and processes Eddie’s words. He can spot the dull violet of ball-point pen ink against the dark brown of Jon’s skin if he really focuses, and resists the urge to go over and trace it. 

“Mm. Not tonight.”

_Surprise, surprise._

Eddie sighs loudly and crosses the space to his partner’s desk in long strides just so Jon has to watch him roll his eyes dismissively. As per usual, Jon’s posture gets stiffer the closer Eddie gets. If he’s tired enough, Eddie can catch his shoulders hunch up and his head duck down subconsciously, like a particularly grumpy turtle. It’s yet to fail to make Eddie laugh.

“Of course not. God forbid you give your back a break and sleep on something as frivolous as a mattress.” He runs the flat of his palm up Jon’s crooked spine to make his point only to be shrugged off. It stings.

“But you won’t concern yourself with anything besides your research, hm? Not even the charming, handsome man trying to get you into bed with him. You do know that _anyone_ would kill for your position? You’re not _that_ stupid- I have standards.” Eddie keeps his voice even as he brings his hand up again to touch the kinky curls at the nape of Jonathan’s neck. This touch he bears with little more than a frown.

“I’m aware, Edward. You’re a catch.” 

Jon’s speaking in his therapy voice, which Eddie doesn’t usually mind- it’s rather attractive- except for when it’s directed at him. It’s passive, bordering on condescending. It snags on the edges of Eddie’s mind in the worst of ways.

“Then touch me, you ass,” He snaps, all pretense of a casual conversation gone from his voice. “At the very least, let me touch _you._” It’s as near to begging as Eddie’s psyche will allow. 

Jonathan tilts his head to regard Eddie and looks him in the eyes for what must be the first time this evening, because it makes Eddie’s heart skip a beat. He could nearly forget why he was angry, getting lost in those dark brown eyes, nearly made black with his pupils dilated as large as they are. 

Eddie resists the urge to pace or tap his foot as Jon gives him a long look with his stupid, gorgeous, baleful eyes. 

“It bothers you.” Almost a question, but his tone is flat in the way it gets when he’s really considering something. He holds up a hand to halt Eddie when he inhales to reply with something scathing. “Now, now, Edward. Don’t you… well, you’ve got your girls.”

“Echo and Query,” Eddie replies with exaggerated slowness, “Yes, congratulations on the most banal of observations. Would you like a sticker, Jonny? What do they have to do with _anything?_”

He keeps a smug smile down when Jon physically bristles at the nickname, and the older man continues in a slightly louder voice, “You’ve got your girls for that sort of thing.” A beat. “Touching.”

Eddie waits exactly ten seconds for Jon to follow that up with something intelligent before barking out a laugh. “Jonathan, if you need me to explain how physical affection from my _lesbian henchwomen_ differ from you, my _partner,_ you’re hopeless.”

“Exactly,” Jon counters, beginning to wring his hands, cracking the joints of his long fingers one by one. He’s looking at Eddie blankly, like it’s somehow his fault that Jon isn’t making any sense. “They don’t want you like I do. Ah, sexually.”

“Your point?”

“...Is that not more comfortable for you, as opposed to my attraction?”

Eddie can’t help himself, he brings his hands up to his mouth to muffle an ungentlemanly snort of laughter. It’s hilarious. Probably the funniest thing he’s heard all week, and he considers himself a humorous man. 

He reaches out to still Jon’s hands before taking each into his own hands, rubbing his thumbs into the grooves of his skin. “Oh, Spooky.” Eddie doesn’t break the pet-name out often, having received less than enthusiastic responses in the past, but this situation is perfect. “Am I just that irresistible? Rhetorical- of course I am. You’re very sweet, but I’m perfectly comfortable around you. Actually, I’d be more comfortable if you didn’t avoid me like the plague.”

Jon takes the hint and folds his hands over Eddie’s. He even goes as far as to stoop down from his ridiculous height and get into Eddie’s personal space, nudging his beak of a nose against Eddie’s. It’s damn near heavenly. 

“Satisfied, you little brat?” The best of Jon’s tones- that warm drawl.

“Never. Come to bed.”

Eddie is considering placing an ultimatum when Jon finally responds. “If you insist.”

He hadn’t expected to get this far, but there isn’t a chance in hell that he’ll admit that to Jon, so he tightens his grip on the older man’s hands and tugs him towards what was formerly Jon’s bedroom. Eddie has more or less claimed the area for himself.

Jon’s nighttime routine is much shorter than Eddie’s own, but Eddie counters this with careful timing so that they’re standing next to each other over the sink while they brush their teeth. The domesticity of it all doesn’t go ignored by either of them. He preens under Jonathan’s attention as he goes about his lengthy skincare routine. Eddie had tried to turn Jon onto the practice, but he barely had the patience for caring for his hair before bedtime, and Eddie didn’t care all that much at the end of the day. If he’s just a little fond of the severe wrinkles of Jon’s brow, no-one has to know but him.

He spritzes some aloe vera water into his hands and holds them out expectantly and Jon ducks his head down obediently. Eddie rewards him with a pleased smile before working his hands into the older man’s hair. He’s proud to note that it’s gotten much less frizzy and damaged since Eddie implemented this routine. Jon’s curls are fuller and darker, drawing attention to the charming waves of silver that are starting at his temples. Usually Jon handles this part of their bedtime prep, but Eddie isn’t afraid to push his luck. And look where it’s gotten him! Massaging his partner’s scalp with his manicured nails while Jon makes a weak attempt not to fall asleep on the spot.

Eddie is admittedly caught up in his own smug thoughts when Jon slowly pulls away. He pouts at the loss and looks up to complain only to shut his mouth with a little click at Jon’s gaze. 

“Come on, darlin’. Let’s get you to bed.”

The memory of the first time they had slept together isn’t particularly special, but it’s a memory that Eddie cherishes nonetheless out of sentiment. Climbing up into Jon’s cot in their shared cell in Arkham, Jon had laid there like a corpse in his stiffness. He had been so preoccupied in seeming aloof he had just let Eddie maneuver his arms like a puppet until he was all wrapped up and comfortable. 

Sleeping with Jon now is somewhat similar. He’s not in a stuffy jumpsuit for one, instead opting for as little clothing as possible, and they don’t have to fight for the smallest inch of space like they would in the Asylum.

“Socks?” Eddie asks, eyeing Jon’s feet warily. They got even colder than the rest of him at night.

“Nope.”

_“Jonathan.”_

“No way in hell.”

Eddie sniffs derisively as he goes about changing into his silk pajamas. This pair is a gift from Ozzie, a little ‘O. C.’ stitched into the insides of the sleeves. Eddie treasures it as much as he does his other gifts from his “gentleman suitors” as Jon was so fond of calling them.  
“If you wake me up, I’ll chop them off. Be a dear and get the light, hm?”

Eddie settles himself in bed under the covers and listens to noise of Jon’s joints as the other man shifts to close the curtains, leaving them in relative darkness. The glittering LEDs of Eddie’s various electronics and the occasional tram running past their abode provide the only light in the room.

Jon shifts beside him so that he can fold his gangly arms behind his head and Eddie quickly takes up the space under his arm, resting his cheek against Jon’s chest. His chest hair tickles his face, but it’s perfect. 

They lie together like that for a little while, until Jonathan surprises Eddie by breaking the silence.

“You don’t mind?” His voice is low and thick with tiredness, drawing out his accent.

“No, Jon. I know you’re not going to accost me in my sleep. What an idiotic assumption.”

Jonathan snorts and drops down one arm to wrap it around Eddie’s shoulders. “No, pet, what I meant to say is- you truly don’t mind that I don’t love you?”

Eddie rolls over on top of Jon to fix him with an annoyed look.

“Of course you love me, everyone loves me. I don’t care that it’s not romantic, if that’s what you’re getting at. Do you care that I won’t have sex with you?”

“No, not particularly.”

Eddie drops his chin to rest on the other man’s chest. “Then we’re fine. This is nice, after all. Isn’t it?” He watches carefully for any reaction.

Jon is quiet for a long time, and Eddie can imagine his drug-addled brain chewing over how to respond.

“Very nice,” he agrees eventually, and startles Eddie again by rolling over on top of him and smacking a kiss to his forehead. “Get your beauty sleep. I won’t stand to hear you complaining in the morning that I kept you up.”

Eddie hums contently and squirms until he’s more comfortably pinned. He can say with confidence that there isn’t anything he wants more than to enjoy his partner’s company like this.


End file.
